Curtain rod bracket fastener



Sept. 11, 1956 F. E. BLECHSCHMIDT CURTAIN ROD BRACKET FASTENER 2 Sheeis-Sheet 1 Filed July 27, 1953 F JUL p 1956 F. E. BLECHSCHMIDT 2,762,596,

CURTAIN ROD BRACKET FASTENER Filed July 27, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR I I BY 'l 0 I I ATTORNEYS United States Patent CURTAIN ROD BRACKET FASTENER Fred E. Blechschmidt, Huron, S. Dak.

Application July 27, 1953, Serial No. 370,315

1 Claim. (Cl. 248265) This invention relates to an improved curtain rod bracket fastener.

It is an object of this invention to provide an improved curtain rod bracket fastener so constructed and arranged in a manner to distribute the bearing stresses imposed on the hangers by the weight of the supported curtains and curtain rod on the window trim.

It is another object of this invention to provide a curtain rod bracket fastener of the kind to be more particularly described hereinafter which is light in weight and readily mounted on the window trim adjacent to the window with which the curtain is to be located.

A further object of this invention is to provide a curtain rod bracket fastener of this kind on which the curtain and curtain rod may be adjusted to a selected vertical position in relation to the window.

It is another object of this invention to provide a curtain rod bracket fastener which may be employed on a conventional window frame and will not mar by scratching or by excessively localized compressive pressure forces the appearance of the window trim either during the use of the fastener, or for the use of the window trim after the fastener has been removed.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide an improved curtain rod bracket fastenerwhich is formed of material readily available and low in cost whereby the novel fastener may be economically manufactured and distributed at a reasonable cost.

Other and further objects and advantages of this invention will be hereinafterdescribed and the novel features thereof defined in the appended claim.

Referring to the drawings,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a window having a trim at the upper end thereof and supporting a curtain rod bracket with the curtain rod.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the curtain rod bracket shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary top plan view, partly broken away, of one of the curtain rod bracket fasteners of this invention.

Fig. 4 is a side elevation of the curtain rod bracket and fastener shown in Figs. 1 to 3.

Fig. 5 is a front view of the curtain rod bracket fastener removed from the window trim and curtain rod.

Fig. 6 is a top plan view of the curtain rod bracket fastener shown in Fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is a transverse section taken on the line 77 of Fig. 5.

Fig. 8 is a front plan view, partly broken away, of the lower end of the curtain rod bracket fastener showing the lowermost of the clamping members.

Fig. 9 is a front elevational view, partly broken away, showing the curtain rod bracket fasteners as in Fig. 1 of the drawings and including a curtain rod bracket fastener for engaging the curtain rod intermediate the length thereof.

Fig. 10 is a top plan view of the intermediate curtain rod bracket fastener.

7 2,762,596 Patented Sept. 11, 1956 ice Fig. 11 is a front view of the intermediate fastening member shown in Fig. 10.

Fig. 12 is a transverse sectional view, taken on the line 12-12 of Fig. 3.

In the drawings, the side wall of a building is denoted by the numeral 15 and the side wall 15 is provided with a window opening 16 to be partially closed by or decorated with a curtain. A window trim 17 is fastened to the wall 15 by conventional fastening means at the upper end of the window opening 16 and extends horizontally of the wall 15. Curtain rod supporting brackets 18 are fastened to the trim 17 for supporting a curtain rod 19 transversely of the window opening 16. The curtain rod 19 is supported by the bracket 18, at each end of the rod if the curtain rod 19 can properly be supported at its opposite ends. The use of a curtain rod 19 supported at its opposite ends is clearly shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings and in the case of an overly long curtain rod an intermediate fastener 20 may be employed for supporting the curtain rod 19 intermediate the length thereof and between the brackets 18.

Each of the brackets 18 is principally formed of wire bent upon itself to provide a pair of parallel, spaced apart arms or guides 20 which are positioned in parallel spaced apart relation to the trim 17 and secured to the trim in spaced apart relation thereto. Each of the arms 20 is bent at right angles to the center depending portion of the arm 20, as clearly shown in Fig. 5 of the drawings for extending inwardly toward the wall 15 and overlying the upper edge of the trim 17. The extreme outer end of the'arm 21 is materially flattened to provide a flat tang for disposition between the upper edge of the trim 17 and the wall 15 so that the trim need not be drilled or otherwise marred during the time that the bracket 18 is supported thereon. As the brackets 18 are adapted to be used at the opposite ends of a curtain rod and at the opposite ends of the trim 17 the arm 21 will be disposed at substantially right angles to the parallel disposition between the arm 20 and the trim 17 and certain of the arms 21 will be disposed at right angles to the other ones of the arms 21 as clearly shown in Fig. 6 of the drawings. The selected one of the arms 21 which will be twisted relative to the other arm will be dependent upon the end of the trim with which the bracket is to be engaged. If the bracket is to be supported on the left end of the trim 17 one arm 21 will be positioned at right angles to the wall 15 and the other arm 21 will be slanted 01f to the right as shown in Fig. 9 of the drawings. When the bracket 18is used on the right end of the trim 17, one arm 21, most closely adjacent to the end of the trim 17, will be positioned at right angles relative to the wall 15 and the other arm 21 will be slanted off to the left of the bracket.

When the'overly long curtain rod 19 is used the arms 21 will be disposed at an angle relative to the vertical plane which engages the wall 15 at right angles so that the arms 21 will be evenly angled off relative to the guide 20.

In order to support the curtain rod 19 at its opposite ends a curtain rod supporting plate 23 is positioned over the guide 20 for vertical sliding movement relative to the rod. A suitable curtain rod engaging member is fixedly carried by the plate 23 and may have an upwardly directed pin, not shown in the drawings, or a right angularly formed elbow 25 as seen in Fig. 3 of the drawing. One end of the elbow 25 may be fixedly secured to the plate 23 and the other end will be slanted off at right angles for engaging one end of the curtain rod 19. Under suitable conditions the curtain rod 19 may be threaded at the ends and threadably engaged in the outer threaded end of the elbow 25.

For properly supporting the elbow 25 and the curtain rod supporting plate 23 in a selected position on the guides 20 a clamping means 26 is slidably supported by the guides 20 and one of the clamping members 26 engages the curtain rod supporting member 23 at the lower end thereof and the other of the clamping members engages the .plate 23 atthe upper endthereof. With both of the clamping members 26 loose on the guides 20, the clamping members and the curtain rod engaging and Supporting plate 23 may be moved on the guides 20 to a selected position relative tothe window opening 16. When the desired position of the curtain rod 19 has been determined, the lowermost of the clamping members 26 may 'be tightened or secured in position to support the plate 23 in the determined position.

Each'of the clamping members 26 is formed in substantially the same manner although the lower clamping member 26 is directed upwardly for clamping engagement with the lower edge of the plate 23 and the upper clamping member 26 is directed downwardly for engagement with the upper edge of the plate 23. Each clamping member 26 is formed with a body 27 which is sub stantially flat at its inner and outer sides and the inner side is in engagement with the guides 28. A lug 28 is fixed to, or formed integral with the body 27 and disposed insliding engagement with, the outer surface of the guide 20 and another leg 28 is secured on the other side of the body 27 for sliding engagement with the outside surface of the other of the guide members 28. An other lug 29 is fixed on, or formed integral with, the body 27 and is spaced from the lug 28, for disposition between the guides 30. The lugs 28 and 29 by their engagement with the guides 20 will prevent any inadvertent sliding movement of the clamping members 26 relative to the guides 20.

- A screw 30 is engaged through an opening in the body 27 and between the guides 20 and extends in the direction of the wall 15 from the guides 20 and curtain rod 19. A threaded disc 31 is threadably engaged on the screw 30 and will engage the inner surface of the guides 20 while the body 27 engages the outside surface so that the clamping members may be clampingly engaged with the guides 20 for preventing any further sliding movement of the clamping members 26 on the guides 20. The clamping members 26 are initially loosely disposed in engagement with the guides 20 and when a proper position has been determined for locating the plate 23 the bottom clamping member 26 may be tightened on the guide members 20 and the plate 23 will thereby be prevented from any further downward movement which may be caused by the weight of the curtain rod or curtain on the curtain rod. The lowermost screw 30 which engages through the clamping member 26 may be elongated and the extreme innerend of the screw 30 positioned for abutting engagement with the trim so that the supporting bracket 18 will be substantially stationarily engaged with the trim 17 and held against any rocking movement as may be effected by the Weight of the rod and the curtain. The engagement of the tangs 22 between the trim and the wall will prevent any outward sliding movement of the bracket 18 at its upper end and the elongated screw 30, by abutting the trim, will prevent any inward movement of the lower end of the bracket 18 and guides 20 relative to the trim.

In the operation of this improved curtain rod bracket fastener the brackets 18 are initially engaged with the trim 17 by forcing the pointed end of the tang 22 downwardly between the trim 17 and the wall 15.

A brace 34 is fixedly secured to the arms, or arm portions 21 for fixedly securing the arms against any inadvertent spreading apart motion which may be caused by the weight of the curtains. The lower clamping member 26 is first tightened into clamping engagement with the curtain rod engaging member 24 with the free end of the screw 30 engaging the trim 17 to properly position the guides 20. Then the upper clamping member 26 is slid down into engagement with the upper edge of the plate 23 and then tightly clamped by threading the shortened screw 30. The shortened screw 30 is too short to engage the trim 17 but both of the screws 30 are provided with their curve and head on the outer end of the screw whereby it may be readily reached by a person mounting the brackets 18 with a screw driver or other similar tool. The externally serrated nut 32 may then be rotated in its threaded engagement with the screw 30 for tightly positioning the internally threaded disc 31. By providing the lock nut 32 with external serrations the disc 31 may be thereby fully locked for securing the body 27 into clamping engagement with the guides 20 by a person merely extending their fingers within the bracket 18 and then rotating the lock nut 32.

A removable pad 35 is secured on the end of the screw 30 to prevent the end of the screw 30 from marring the trim. The pad 35 may be made of rubber, plastic or any other suitable soft material to reduce the bearing stress of the screw 30 on the trim 17.

While the specific details of one embodiment of this invention have been herein shown and described, the invention is not confined thereto and changes and alterations may be made without departing from the spirit and scope thereof as defined in the appended claim.

Having thus described my invention, what I desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

A curtain rod bracket fastener comprising a pair of vertical parallel bars connected together at their lower ends, a right angle arm extending from the upper ends of said bars, said arms extending in divergent relation from said bars, dependent anchoring members extending from the free ends of said arms, upper and lower bracket fastener means secured to said bars, each of said fastener means including an elongated bolt, a head on the inner end of said bolt engageable with a portion of the window trim whereby to hold said bars vertical, means carried by said bolts engageable with a bracket base for securing said base to said bars, and a bracing plate fixed between said arms.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,242,088 Walker Oct. 2, 1917 1,468,167 Pecor et a1. Sept. 18, 1923 2,056,874 Updegrafi Oct. 6, 1936 2,094,540 Kirchen Sept. 28, 1937 2,341,279 Lucas Feb. 8, 1944 2,460,193 Raudenkolb Jan. 25, 1949 

